preface
In the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, Liverpool took on La Liga side Villarreal at Anfield Stadium.
Villarreal is currently seventh in La Liga, while Liverpool are second in the Premier League, just one point away from top-up Manchester City.
The total value of Liverpool's entire team has reached 900 million euros, while Villarreal's total value is close to 380 million euros.
In the 53rd and 55th minutes of the second half, Liverpool scored two consecutive goals to win 2-0.
Villarreal had only 27% of the ball in the whole game, and only had one shot on goal, with 0 feet on target.
It can be said that Liverpool completed the absolute sense of suppression in the whole game, and fired 19 shots on goal in the first and second half, with a total of 5 shots on target.
Dangerous attacks are launched 6 times more often than the opponent.
Although Villarreal was ultimately unable to draw with Liverpool, judging from the results, the result was acceptable, after all, his own strength was there, and Emery and his players also expressed their views on the difficulty of the game before the game.
Villarreal is wingless 442, radiating flank activity with the advantage of attacking and defending in the middle
The yellow submarine Villarrea, led by Spanish head coach Emery, made it to the semi-finals.
They eliminated Juventus and Bayern Munich in the knockout rounds. Emery knows that in order to win in a cup-type match, it is necessary to emphasize the confrontation in progress.
As a team from La Liga, Emery opted for a wingless 442 formation in the Champions League knockout stages.
We all know that in the 442 formation, most of the left and right full-backs are attacking good on the flanks, while Emery's 442, the left and right full-backs are two midfielders and are counter-foot midfielders.
In this way, their dribbling style and passing run line will give space to the wing and allow the full-backs to make a difference in attack.
Villarreal's starting line-up, although it does not have the so-called orthodox winger, can use the team's possession advantage in the middle of the road to radiate to the side, so that both the offensive and defensive ends of the wing can reduce the pressure put on Liverpool on their own side.
In this game, yellow submarine center player Moreno was unable to start due to injury, and winger Chuku Uze came to the front.
We all know that the center players in the 442 formation must have a certain ability to move, especially the enthusiasm to pull the ball to the side and the awareness of the attack on the side.
Chuku Uze has a certain speed and is often able to come to the wing to meet his teammates, which ensures that the team can counterattack with the wing as the core, and at the same time, the threat of the team to create the ball behind the opponent is also created by the No. 11 Chuku Uze.
Villa switched to wing 442 in the second half, and Emery adjusted his thinking clearly and correctly
Villarreal's two midfielders in the 442 formation, Parejo and Capué, are two tall midfielders who lack some mobility.
Mobility gradually declines over time, and the team's midfield loses the same vigour of the first half in the 53-55 minutes of the game.
It was liverpool who seized these two opportunities to score two goals and set the course for the win of the game.
After falling behind by two goals, Emery immediately made personnel adjustments to the team, the formation of the 442 remained unchanged, and the left wing and midfield made personnel strategy adjustments.
Emery replaced Pedraza, who was able to break through, and let No. 5 Voyt come into midfield, let assist-type full-back Orier appear, coupled with the alignment of the forward position, the team changed strategy, and the signal to strengthen the attack became particularly strong.
Full summary
Emery chose the wingless 442 in a draw, using the thickness and advantage of the middle to drive the defense of the wing.
When he was behind, he decisively returned to the traditional 442, allowing the wingers to have more linear breakthroughs, thus giving more strong support to the midfielders.
Although there is a big gap between the strength of the team and Liverpool, Emery's thinking is not obviously wrong, and it can even be said that every step is correct.